She brought about a huge change in music, and bridged America's cultural and racial divide
Blues and gospel singer Etta James strongly influenced other pop and soul artists from the mid-1950s onwards. Rev Al Sharpton met her while he was working for the musician James Brown.
I can't remember for sure what the first song was that I heard sung by Etta James, because I was so young at the time. I just remember my mother loved her music, so she would have it on in the house all the time when we were young.
As I said when I was asked to give the eulogy at her funeral, she really did bridge rhythm and blues and rock'n'roll, and helped bring about a huge change in music and culture. And she did it at a time of great difficulty and struggle. She also helped to bridge the cultural and racial divide that existed in 1950s America.
The first time I met Etta was when I was with James Brown in the 1970s [Sharpton was his tour manager]. James Brown became like a father figure to me, and Etta James came out on the tour, too. She had a huge, forceful personality that could be blunt and frank but was real. Until that time, I had been a little unaware of just how bad the problems she had with addictions were, but James Brown told me all about her. It was amazing to see how she was in pain throughout the tour but would still go on and give an amazing performance.
Although Etta was universally critically acclaimed, she never quite got the huge mainstream success she deserved. I think she certainly felt that, and I know people like James Brown definitely felt that, too. The addictive or destructive side to her, that she struggled with, came through in her voice, because she sang from the heart. That might have been too raw for a few people, and that's maybe why she didn't achieve the commercial success she deserved. But a lot of other people, who had come through or were going through their own struggles could identify with that side of Etta, and that's what made her great to them.
She was an icon and inspiration to younger generations. At her funeral, Christina Aguilera sang her song At Last and said that Etta was her idol. Etta was outspoken to the end as well. After Beyoncé sang At Last at Barack Obama's inauguration ball, she came out and said that Beyoncé "had no business" singing her song. That was typical Etta James. [She later clarified that her ticking-off was meant in jest].
The abiding memory I will keep of Etta is watching her on the road with James Brown in the 70s. I can remember standing in the wings watching a woman who was singing through her pain, and eased other people's pain.
Read the Guardian obituary here